America can no longer afford to be soft on crime through its laws, police budgets, and elections of leaders and prosecutors, according to a Fox News analyst whose brother was murdered.
“On June 24, 2022, my life was changed when my innocent baby, teenage brother Christian was murdered in Chicago,” conservative commentator Gianno Caldwell told an audience Wednesday evening at the Ronald Reagan Presidential Library and Museum. “Since then, I’ve been out for justice not just for him but for others who have experienced a very similar tragedy as my family.”
Caldwell discussed his recently published book, “The Day My Brother Was Murdered: My Journey Through America’s Violent Crime Crisis,” during his talk in Simi Valley, north of Los Angeles. That’s where Caldwell answered questions from Melissa Giller, chief marketing officer of the Ronald Reagan Foundation and Institute, and audience members.
Caldwell wrote that Christian, who was 18, died on Chicago’s South Side when a black SUV pulled up, and several unidentified men opened fire on a crowd.
The Fox News analyst said 150 people across the U.S. were murdered on the same day as his brother. For his book, he told the stories of eight of them, including his brother. He also interviewed Fox News host Sean Hannity and “America’s Most Wanted” host John Walsh. Additionally, Caldwell talked to Dr. Drew Pinsky, a TV host and addiction medicine specialist, about the nation’s mental health crisis and its impact on crime.
Caldwell said he felt inspired by the families he interviewed and their efforts to find justice for loved ones who were murdered.
In addition to writing the book, Caldwell started the Caldwell Institute for Public Safety and Caldwell Foundation for Public Safety, organizations that stress crime prevention.
“It can be preventable if you have the right people in charge,” Caldwell said as he answered Giller’s questions. “ ‘The Day My Brother Was Murdered’ is a manual for change.”
He noted he supported Nathan Hochman in his successful campaign to replace George Gascón as Los Angeles County district attorney.
“George Gascón was an absolute disaster,” Caldwell said, noting the district attorney did not recommend enhancements to get additional prison time on violent crimes.
Caldwell also warned against defunding police, something he said that Zohran Kwame Mamdani, a Democratic socialist candidate running for mayor of New York, wants to do.
During the 2020 Black Lives Matter protests, Mamdani advocated dismantling the New York Police Department. Fox News reported Mamdani is now backtracking those comments.
“A number of cities — Los Angeles, Chicago, New York — defunded police departments. What did that lead to, except for death and destruction? It’s insane to do that,” Caldwell said. “The most insane voices have become amplified.”
“In the most dangerous neighborhoods, the citizens there want more police, not less,” Caldwell said.
Caldwell, who warned about the failures of Democratic-led policies on crime, stressed the importance of electing officials who are tough on crime. He said people wanting a safer country voted for President Donald Trump instead of former President Joe Biden. In addition, Caldwell, who was in the Oval Office when Trump appointee Pam Bondi was sworn in as attorney general, praised her for supporting his efforts for stronger policies on crime.
“If you don’t have the right people in place, you might not be able to change much,” Caldwell said. “We saw that with four years of Biden.”
